To maintain and advance their product position, Packard's general manager, Henry Bourne Joy, sought to establish a dedicated testing facility.

Testing on local streets and roads was risky due to traffic, and could potentially expose Packard's future product developments to curious competitors.

[2] An early attempt to locate a testing facility north and east of Detroit near the city of Mount Clemens was not approved by the Packard board of directors.

At the dawn of America's entry into World War I, Joy leased and eventually sold the site to the U.S. Government for use as a training airfield.

This time, a 560-acre (2.3 km2) site in Charter Township of Shelby, Michigan about 20 miles (32 km) due north of the Packard factory, was procured.

[2] The Packard Proving Grounds consisted of a 2.5-mile (4.0 km) high-speed concrete oval track with timing tower, miles of test roads of various conditions, an airplane hangar (Packard was also involved in developing aircraft engines, and used the track's infield as a landing strip), a repair garage, and a gate house/lodge that housed the Proving Grounds manager and his family.

With the growth through the years of the surrounding Shelby Township and Utica communities, Ford Land decided to make the excess property at the former Packard Proving Grounds available for development.

The first proposal they entertained was for a United States Postal Service distribution center to be located along 23 Mile Road at the north end of the Proving Grounds site.

A non-profit group called the Packard Motor Car Foundation was officially formed to approach Ford Land in an attempt to preserve the most historic and significant portions of the Proving Grounds.

An additional 7 acres (28,000 m2), containing the timing tower and a 458-foot (140 m) section of the original test track, would be given to the Foundation once certain restoration and fundraising goals were met.

Proposals for the future sustaining use of the site include an "Arsenal of Democracy" museum, which would illustrate the many contributions made to World War II by the automotive industry.

[2] West of these buildings, where the driveways meet the test track, is the 1927 Timing House, an octagonal, two-story wood-frame structure with an open upper deck.